A mule in Aiken, South Carolina has tested positive for Equine Infectious Anemia. This is the first case of EIA in Aiken since the 1990s. In fact, South Carolina is the only Southeastern state in which no positive cases of EIA were recorded in the last ten years.

The mule, which has been euthanized and is said to no longer pose a threat to other equines, lived in the Fox Chase subdivision which borders the Hitchcock Woods. Since the disease is carried and transferred via mosquitos and horseflies, and since the Hitchcock Woods are a center of equine activity in Aiken, concerns are raised about the potential spread of the disease.

Like the HIV virus in humans, the EIA virus weakens the immune system of equines and leads to other diseases. Click for more details in the WRDW-TV news report by Travis Ragsdale.

Posted September 5, 2014